Bravo Group Manufacturing (Pty) Ltd v City of Johannesburg (40205/14) [2022] ZAGPPHC 101 (15 February 2022)

Bravo Group Manufacturing (Pty) Ltd v City of Johannesburg (40205/14) [2022] ZAGPPHC 101 (15 February 2022)

The court found that the respondent's failure to comply with the 2014 order does not bring finality to the litigation. The process of statement and debatement requires the respondent to provide a full account and debate it with the applicant before the matter can be finally determined. The respondent's inaction cannot terminate the proceedings, and the applicant is entitled to the requested particulars to proceed to trial. The respondent did not provide any explanation for its delay or failure to comply, and its conduct was deemed inexcusable. There was no basis to refer the application to the opposed motion roll; the relief sought was appropriate for determination in the unopposed motion...

Citation
[2022] ZAGPPHC 101
Parties
Applicant: Bravo Group Manufacturing (Pty) Ltd; Respondent: City of Johannesburg
Court
North Gauteng High Court, Pretoria
Jurisdiction
South Africa
Judgment Date
15 February 2022
Case Number
40205/14
Procedural Posture
Civil Application / Application to Compel Further Particulars for Trial; Respondent Seeks Removal From Unopposed Roll and Admission of Answering Affidavit
Outcome
Application granted; respondent ordered to reply to request for further particulars within 10 days and to pay costs on attorney and client scale.
Judges
E van der Schyff
Legal Topics
Statement and Debatement, Application to Compel, Default Judgment, Trial Preparation
Civil Procedure Statement and Debatement Application to Compel Default Judgment Trial Preparation

Case Brief

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Parties

Bravo Group Manufacturing (Pty) Ltd

Applicant

City of Johannesburg

Respondent

Procedural Posture

Civil Application / Application to Compel Further Particulars for Trial; Respondent Seeks Removal From Unopposed Roll and Admission of Answering Affidavit

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the respondent's late answering affidavit should be admitted and the matter removed from the unopposed roll.
  2. 2 Whether the respondent's failure to comply with the 2014 court order brings finality to the litigation.
  3. 3 Whether the applicant is entitled to further particulars for trial preparation despite the previous default judgment.

Ratio Decidendi

The court found that the respondent's failure to comply with the 2014 order does not bring finality to the litigation. The process of statement and debatement requires the respondent to provide a full account and debate it with the applicant before the matter can be finally determined. The respondent's inaction cannot terminate the proceedings, and the applicant is entitled to the requested particulars to proceed to trial. The respondent did not provide any explanation for its delay or failure to comply, and its conduct was deemed inexcusable. There was no basis to refer the application to the opposed motion roll; the relief sought was appropriate for determination in the unopposed motion...

Court Disposition

Application granted; respondent ordered to reply to request for further particulars within 10 days and to pay costs on attorney and client scale.

Orders

  • The respondent is ordered to reply to the plaintiff’s Request for Further Particulars for the Purposes of a Trial within 10 days.
  • The respondent is to pay the costs of the application on an opposed motion attorney and client scale.